Weld County flu death victim’s identity still mystery

Dec. 06--Colorado's first death of the flu season was a young adult hospitalized in Weld County but no more details on the deceased were released by the Weld County health department Thursday.

Department spokesman Eric Aakko said he could not disclose the identity of the deceased person or other information such as age, gender or residence because patient privacy information is protected by the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, also known as HIPAA.

The death was the result of the H1N1 strain of influenza, which was responsible for the 2009 flu pandemic, according Aakko .

Aakko said the person was a young adult between the ages of 22 and 30 , and said the death was unique because the person was not the age of a person who typically dies from influenza.

The person did not receive a flu shot this year to the health department's knowledge, Aakko said.

"What happened with this individual is they didn't have any other health conditions, so basically it was the flu that overcame their immune system," Aakko said.

Weld County currently has three hospitalized cases of the flu, according to Aakko.

Aakko couldn't provide the number of influenza deaths in Weld County last year because the flu is "not a reportable condition," and therefore is difficult to track. However, he said pediatric flu deaths are a reportable condition. Weld County has not recorded any children killed by the flu this year or last year.

He said flu vaccines every year since 2009 protect against the H1N1 strain, including this year's vaccine.

"Part of our message is we want the public to take the flu seriously," Aakko said. "It can cause death."

He said in mild cases, the person could be sick in bed for three to seven days. A flu vaccine is the best way to protect a person from the flu, he said.

People should also be washing their hands with warm, soapy water, covering their coughs, getting adequate sleep and eating healthy food to keep their immune system strong, he said.

For those that haven't received a flu shot this year, it's not too late, Aakko said.

The flu season generally peaks between January and February, so people still have time to get vaccinated and have it be effective, he said.

Aakko said he hasn't heard of any shortages of the vaccine. People can get flu shots at the health department and at most pharmacies. He said the cost depends on a person's health coverage, but many health insurance providers cover an annual vaccination for free.

"There's plenty of vaccine available and there's plenty of time to still get vaccinated," Aakko said.

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